University of Richmond Athletics
This Is Gameweek: Clawson Era Opens To Sold-Out Stadium
Sept. 1, 2004
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UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - The much anticipated beginning to the Dave Clawson era of Richmond Football kicks off at 6 p.m. on Saturday in a sold-out Carter-Finley Stadium. The Spiders open their inaugural campaign under Clawson's direction against ACC-power NC State before a standing-room only crowd of 53,800. Richmond sold its entire allotment of tickets so the Spiders will have a vocal representation. The players are excited to face a I-A opponent for the sixth time in the past five years, the first since opening the 2002 campaign at Temple. Clawson will look to junior signal-caller Stacy Tutt, making his fifth career start under center, to lead the Spider offense. An experienced defense will attempt to stop NC State's first-time QB Jay Davis. The Spiders travel to Lexington, Va. next week for a Noon contest at VMI. The game will be televised by Comcast. INSIDE THE HUDDLE
RICHMOND SPIDERS
Game Notes
Roster
Statistics
NC STATE WOLFPACK
Game Notes
Roster
Statistics
STORYLINES
* Dave Clawson became Richmond's 32nd head coach when he was hired on Feb. 23, 2004. The 2002 I-AA National Coach of the Year was 29-29 in five years at Fordham.
* Richmond is 53-60-7 all-time in season-openers. The Spiders have lost their last four season openers against I-A teams. The last victory came against Virginia Tech to open the 1985 campaign (Sept. 7) .
* After not winning in the first 16 meetings (one scoreless tie in 1906) against the Wolfpack, the Spiders finally ended the skid with a 21-6 victory on Sept. 12, 1970.
* Richmond is 0-10-1 in Raleigh. The last visit -- also the last meeting in the series -- ended in a 27-21 decision for NC State on Sept. 5, 1981.
* The first meeting between these two programs came on Nov. 18, 1895 when NC State won 40-0.
* The Spiders are 26-120-10 all-time against current members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Virginia Tech is their most common opponent (47 meetings).
* The trip to Raleigh will be a homecoming for junior linebacker Chaz Curtis. The linebacker earned All-Conference honors at Southeast Raleigh HS. Curtis reunited with two Wolfpack players that also played at Southeast: redshirt sophomore Leroy Harris (OL) and redshirt freshman Yomi Ojo (OL).
* Spider junior Stacy Tutt begins his first collegiate season as the starting quarterback. He has started four games in his career, including the final three of 2003. Tutt's lone win as a starting QB came in his first start, a 35-13 victory at William & Mary (Nov. 23, 2002).
GAME NOTES
Season-Openers ... This is the 121st season of Richmond football ... UR is 53-60-7 all-time in season-openers ... The Spiders have won eight of their past 12 ... Last fall, eventual national champion Delaware defeated Richmond 44-14 in Newark on Sept. 13. On This Date ... The last time the Spiders opened a season on Sept. 4 was 1999 ... Richmond whipped VMI, 42-6, at UR Stadium ... VMI was also the opponent in 1993 when the Spiders prevailed 38-14 on Sept. 4 -- also their season opener ... The Spiders are 2-2 all-time on this date. Under New Management ... Dave Clawson became the 32nd head coach in Richmond football history when he was hired on Feb. 23 ... Clawson spent the last five years leading Fordham football, posting a 26-10 record during the past three seasons, the 14th best winning percentage (72.2) in I-AA football during that time ... In five years, Clawson posted a 29-29 record and earned Patriot League Coach of the Year in 2002 and Co-Coach of the Year in 2001. Debut Season ... Since the 1950 season, six different coaches have served as head coach at Richmond ... Only one of them recorded a winning season in his first attempt (Jim Reid), while Jim Tait won .500 of his contests. Against the ACC ... Richmond is 26-120-10 all-time against current members of the Atlantic Coast Conference ... The last time Richmond defeated a member of the ACC was on Sept. 6, 1985 when the Spiders captured a 24-14 win at Virginia Tech. Three Straight Roadies ... For the 11th time in program history, the Spiders begin their season with three consecutive road games ... The last time Richmond opened with three on the road was 1997 -- at UMass (W), Colgate (W) and Virginia (L) ... The Spiders also began with three away games in 1914, `19, `27, `58, `59, `60, `66, `79 and `81.